Survey: More than 50% of ACS patients do not follow prescribed OAP regimen

PARSIPPANY, N.J. and INDIANAPOLIS — When people with acute coronary syndrome undergo an angioplasty procedure and receive a heart stent, they’re usually prescribed an oral anti platelet therapy and aspirin to prevent a heart attack, a blood clot in the heart stent (also known as stent thrombosis) or even death. 

 

But a recent Harris Poll survey found that 52% of 275 ACS patients currently taking an OAP missed taking or changed the way they take their prescribed OAP therapy, even after being informed by their doctors of its importance. Of the respondents, those under age 65 years — 194 participants — were more likely not to follow their OAP regiment as prescribed than older respondents. 

 

To address the issues, the Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association, Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions and Mended Hearts, with help from Daiichi Sankyo and Eli Lilly and Co., are asking healthcare professionals to increase efforts to help ACS patients adhere to their prescribed OAP therapy following an angioplasty or cardiac stent procedure. 

 

"For people who have recently received a heart stent for ACS, changing, skipping or discontinuing OAP therapy increases the risk of serious heart problems or even death," said Jeffrey Cavendish MD, FSCAI, FACC, lead interventional cardiologist for Kaiser Permanente San Diego and director of the cardiac catheterization laboratory at the Scripps Prebys Cardiovascular Institute in La Jolla, California.

 

SCAI, PCNA and Mended Hearts are rolling out the “After the Stent: Follow Your Action Plan” campaign with a goal of improving patient knowledge and practices related to OAP regimens. 

 

"Patients may stop taking their OAP medication for a variety of reasons, such as mistakenly believing their heart condition is 'fixed' or not understanding why or how long they need to take the medication," said Lola Coke, PHD, ACNS-BC, RN-BC, FAHA, FPCNA, associate professor of nursing and cardiovascular clinical nurse specialist at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois, and member of the board of directors of PCNA. "Identifying and correcting these misunderstandings is a first step health care professionals can take to ensure medication adherence. Health care professionals need to make sure that ACS patients and caregivers have the right information and support to follow their medication regimens."

 

PCNA and SCAI published a position paper demonstrating the need for increased attention to OAP medication and provides research-based solutions to address non adherence. The paper can be viewed here.